A Friend in Deed
by Dede42
Summary: Pinkie Pie is friends with everypony in Ponyville and when a donkey named Cranky Doodle Donkey moves to town, she works on becoming friends with him, even though he doesn't want anything to do with the pink pony. Will she be successful?
1. Chapter 1: A NEW FRIEND! MAYBE?

My Little Pony Friendship is Magic: A Friend in Deed

A/N: Welcome back to the start of a new story, MLP fans! I hope you all had a fun weekend since my was a bit hectic with the new _Captain Marvel_ movie being in theaters, so you can imagine just how busy it's been at work. Anyway, on with the story!

Read, review, and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from _My Little Pony: Magic is Friendship_. I just own any and all characters that I just happen create.

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE: A NEW FRIEND! MAYBE?**

It was a sunny day in Ponyville and in her bedroom, Pinkie Pie turned on some disco music and dressed herself in workout clothes and this was part of her plan to get the twins, Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake, laughing. She studied her appearance in the mirror and grinned.

"Let's do this!"

* * *

Going to the nursery, Pinkie Pie began acting silly by sticking her tongue out and making silly faces. "Happy! Sad. Happy! Sad. Happy! Sad. Open, shut, open, shut, open, shut, open, shut. Yep, yep-yep-yep-yep-yep-yep. Nope, nope-nope-nope-nope-nope-nope. Oooweooo, oooweooo, oooweooo, oooweooo, oooweooweooweoo!" She then blew a raspberry, and paused, panting.

The twins exchanged a look after the performance and neither of them laughed.

Disappointed, Pinkie Pie sat down – and then shot into the air with a pained yelp since she'd sat down on some jacks. She went spinning around the ceiling van, and crashed to the floor while sending a pile of stuffed toys into the air. She sat up and got bonked on the head three times by the fallen toys, and she got a dazed expression on her face with her tongue sticking out a bit.

Pumpkin Cake made baby noises to Pound Cake, and they both began laughing.

Hearing this, Pinkie Pie pumped one hoof. "Nailed it!"

* * *

The next morning as a rooster crowed, Pinkie Pie left Sugarcube Corner and she greeted DaisyJo as she went up the steps to enter the shop.

"Morning, DaisyJo!" she said cheerfully. "You here to pick up some cookies to go with your milk?"

DaisyJo nodded, smiling. "Oh ya, Pinkie, don'tcha know?"

"Well, Mrs. Cake just baked a fresh batch of your favorite oatmeal," the pink pony informed the cow.

"Mooo, sounds delightful!" said DaisyJo happily.

Pleased, Pinkie Pie trotted through the town, greeting the ponies she passed. "Oh, Rose, your Calla Lilies look even better than last year!" she exclaimed, admiring the white lilies. "I bet you'll take first prize at the flower show again."

"Thanks, Pinkie!" said Rose, delighted. "Would you like one?"

"Absolutely!" the pink pony agreed and caught the lily in her mouth while clicking her hooves together. "Looking fit as a fiddle, Mr. Waddle, and you're wearing my favorite tie!" she mentioned to the elderly pony.

Mr. Waddle smiled. "Aw, shucks, Miss Pinkie, you flatterer you."

"Well, happy birthday, Cheerilee," Pinkie Pie said to the school teacher.

Cheerilee beamed. "Thank _you_, Pinkie."

"Happy day-after-your-birthday, Zecora!" the pink pony called out to the zebra.

"What a lovely hi, Miss Pinkie Pie!" Zecora responded, smiling.

"And Miss Matilda, happy birthday to you…" Pinkie Pie said to a lady donkey "in one hundred and thirty two days!"

Matilda was impressed that the pink pony could remember everypony's birthday so easily. "Pinkie Pie! How do you remember everything about everypony?" she inquired.

"'Cause everypony's my friend and I love to see my friends smile!" Pinkie Pie responded and began singing as she continued through the town, making the ponies around her smile, even a pair of sad fillies began smiling.

"My name is Pinkie Pie (_Hello!_)" she sang. "And I am here to say (_How ya doin'?_) I'm gonna make you smile and I will brighten up your day. It doesn't matter now (_What's up?_) If you are sad or blue (_Howdy!_) 'Cause cheering up my friends is just what Pinkie's here to do. 'Cause I love to make you smile, smile, smile. Yes I do. It fills my heart with sunshine all the while. Yes it does. 'Cause all I really need's a smile, smile, smile. From these happy friends of mine. I like to see you grin (_Awesome!_) I love to see you beam (_Rock on!_) The corners of your mouth turned up is always Pinkie's dream (_Hoof bump!_) But if you're kind of worried. And your face has made a frown. I'll work real hard and do my best to turn that sad frown upside down. 'Cause I love to make you grin, grin, grin. Yes I do. Bust it out from ear to ear let it begin. Just give me a joyful grin, grin, grin. And you fill me with good cheer."

* * *

She stopped by Sweet Apple Acres to help Applejack paint the side of the barn, and then she resumed singing, becoming slightly sober.

"It's true some days are dark and lonely," Pinkie Pie sang sadly at first before cheering up again. "And maybe you feel sad. But Pinkie will be there to show you that it isn't that bad. There's one thing that makes me happy and makes my whole life worthwhile. And that's when I talk to my friends and get them to smile. I really am so happy. Your smile fills me with glee. I give a smile I get a smile. And that's so special to me. 'Cause I love to see you beam, beam, beam." She was surprised when she was lifted into the air by Twilight Sparkle, Sunrise Blossom, Sarah, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Fluttershy. "Yes I do. Tell me what more can I say. To make you see. That I do. It makes me happy when you beam, beam, beam. Yes it always makes my day. Come on everypony smile, smile, smile. Fill my heart up with sunshine, sunshine. All I really need's a smile, smile, smile. From these happy friends of mine."

* * *

By this point the other ponies joined in with her by singing, too. "Come on everypony smile, smile, smile. Fill my heart up with sunshine, sunshine. All I really need's a smile, smile, smile. From these happy friends of mine. Come on everypony smile, smile, smile. Fill my heart up with sunshine, sunshine. All I really need's a smile, smile, smile. From these happy friends of my."

"Yes the perfect gift for me," Pinkie Pie sang, turning it into a round. "Is a smile as wide as a mile. To make me happy as can be." And soon they were singing and dancing together in the middle of the town square. "Smile, smile, smile, smile, smile. Come on and smile. Come on and smile. _Smile!_"

Once the song was done, Pinkie Pie found herself face-to-face with a male donkey, who had a cranky expression on his face, and he was pulling a loaded wagon. "I've never seen you before," she remarked.

"Kid, you're smarter than you look," said the cranky donkey.

"Thanks! I'm Pinkie Pie. What's your name?" the pink pony asked cheerfully, but when he walked past her, she blinked and quickly followed. ""Property of C.D.D."" she read on the back of the wagon. "I'm guessing that last "D" is for "Donkey"."

The cranky donkey nodded. "Quick as a whip, kid."

Pleased, Pinkie Pie proceeded to guess what the first letter meant. "Now, how 'bout that "C"?" she asked, bouncing around and saying every name that she knew that started with 'C'. "Hmm… Calvin? Calhoun? Caleb? Carl? Carmine? Carlo? Charlie? Chester? Chico? Claudio? Cletus? Clifford? Coraline? Cornelius? Cortez? Crank? Christopher–?"

"_Cranky_!" the cranky donkey shouted. "It's Cranky, alright?!"

"And your middle name?" the pink pony asked eagerly.

Cranky sighed and mumbled, "Doodle."

"I'm sorry?"

"Doodle."

"One more time…!"

"Doodle," said Cranky Doodle Donkey finally with a frustrated sigh.

Pinkie Pie gasped. "So you're a Cranky Doodle Donkey?" she asked and when he nodded, she began dancing around and singing. "You're a Cranky Doodle Donkey guy. A Cranky Doodle Donkey. I never met you but you're my new friend, and I'm your best friend Pinkie Pie!" She stopped and smiled at him.

However, Cranky Doodle Donkey didn't smile back, instead he looked even grumpier then before. The pink pony tried physically to lift up his mouth in a smile. "C'mon now, Doodle, give a smile!"

"_Nopony calls me Doodle_!" Cranky Doodle Donkey shouted and shoved past her, taking his wagon with him.

Pinkie Pie stared after him, confused and a bit hurt. "What just happened?" she wondered, mentally going over her checklist. "Meet somepony new, check. Introduce myself, check. Sing random song outta nowhere, check. Become instant best friends… uncheck." She frowned and pondered what she did wrong. "I don't get it. How can somepony not become instant best friends with me? Was it something I said? Was it something I sang?" She then shook her head, becoming determined. "This is no time for the blame game, Pinkie! There's somepony new in town, and you need to win him over! 'Try everything you can to make Cranky smile and be your friend'… Check!"

* * *

A/N: Can Pinkie Pie befriend Cranky or will she fail? Stay tune for tomorrow to find out since I won't be able to post on Thursday due to a work shift at the movie theater. See you all tomorrow! Bye for now! R&R everyone!


	2. Chapter 2: PINKIE TRIES AGAIN

My Little Pony Friendship is Magic: A Friend in Deed

A/N: Here's the next chapter as promised, and because I have a number of back-to-back shifts at the movie theater, plus meetings at both jobs, the next update will be on Monday. By Thursday, I should be back on my more normal updating schedule…I hope.

Read, review, and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from _My Little Pony: Magic is Friendship_. I just own any and all characters that I just happen create.

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO: PINKIE TRIES AGAIN**

Having a plan ready, Pinkie Pie went in search of the donkey and she soon found Cranky Doodle Donkey making his way through the town with his wagon full of stuff. She peered at him from behind a corner and then pulled back.

"Alright, Pinkie," she told herself. "If you're gonna win Cranky's friendship, you're gonna have to bring your A game! Let's do this." She then hurried after the donkey and bounced alongside him. "Howdy-doody, Cranky Doodle! So, uh, are you moving to Ponyville, Cranky?" she inquired.

"What gave you the hint there, kid?" Cranky Doodle Donkey asked sarcastically. "The cart full of stuff, maybe?"

"Well, I'd be happy to show you around," the pink pony offered. "It's the least a new friend can do."

Cranky Doodle Donkey stopped to fix her with a stern look. "Listen, kid, I traveled around Equestria my entire life," he informed her. "I've made many friends. I don't need any more."

"Gosh!" said Pinkie Pie, waving to a pair of ponies walking by and they waved back in return. "I could never have too many friends!"

"Well, why don't you go and make some more?" the cranky donkey suggested.

Pinkie Pie shook her head and tied his ears in a bow. "But I don't need to _go _when I can _stay _and make friends… with _you_."

Scowling, Cranky Doodle Donkey shook his head to return his ears to normal. "Look, kid, y-" he began.

"Oh, Cranky, you can call me Pinkie," the pink pony interrupted. "All of my _friends _do."

"Look, _kid_," Cranky Doodle Donkey said curtly. "I came to Ponyville for some peace and quiet and privacy, to be alone with my memories. All I want is to get to my new home and unpack my stuff." And he resumed pulling his wagon with him.

Glancing at the wagon, Pinkie Pie climbed into it and began looking through the stuff. "Ooh, what does _this _bauble do?"

"Don't touch that!" the donkey yelped, stopping his wagon.

Pinkie Pie kept poking around the items with interest. "Ooooooh, what's this?"

"Please, don't!" Cranky Doodle Donkey pleaded.

The pink pony picked up a windchime and played with it. "Oooh, look at these! Eeeheeeheee!"

Cranky Doodle Donkey climbed up and took the item away from her. "_Pinkie_! Keep your hooves off my wagon!" he demanded, shoving her off, and then he began hauling his wagon away again.

"Okay, Cranky," Pinkie Pie agreed sadly, and then she gasped, getting an idea. "I promised not to touch your wagon, so I brought one of my own!" she announced, upon catching up with him once again, and she had a fancy pink wagon with her. "I use it to welcome folks!"

The donkey rolled his eyes. "Who'd'a guessed?"

"Maybe we can be wagon buddies!" the pink pony offered. "Well, you've gotta at least let me give you the special welcome that comes with it…" And she whimpered when he ignored her.

Hearing the whimper, Cranky Doodle Donkey groaned and stopped walking once again. "Let's get this over with."

"That's the spirit!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, revealing that her wagon could open into a band with an oven, and she began singing and dancing around him, putting a party hat on his head.

"Welcome welcome welcome," she sang. "A fine welcome to you. Welcome welcome welcome. I say how do you do? Welcome welcome welcome. I say hip hip hurray. Welcome welcome welcome. To Ponyville today." She then stopped and gestured to the wagon. "Wait for it!"

With a ding, the oven popped open, spraying the donkey with confetti while cake batter shot out of the speakers, and both he and the pink pony got covered while his topee was knocked off. "Noooo!"

"Oh, silly me!" Pinkie Pie giggled while Cranky Doodle Donkey tried to find his toupee, which wasn't easy with dough cake batter covering his face. "I must've put the confetti in the oven and the cake in the confetti cannons! Again!" she giggled again and she ate the batter off of herself. "Mmm, still delicious! Try some, Cranky, it's sure to make you smile."

The donkey ignored her and kept searching for his toupee. "Oh, where is it, where is it?" he moaned.

"Where's what?" the pink pony asked and noticed that something black and hairy was sticking to her bum. She yelped and knocked it off. "Spider! Big hairy spider!"

Cranky Doodle Donkey wiped the batter off his face and he yelped when he saw her stomping on his toupee. "Stop, stop, stop!" he wailed, running over to her.

Pinkie Pie stopped and picked up the remains when she realized that he was bald. "Oh. Was that your wig?" she asked sheepishly and the cranky donkey growled at her. "I can fix this, I can fix this!" she promised, dropping the wrecked toupee and climbed up a nearby flagpole. Pulling out a megaphone, she used it to get the attention of the nearby ponies. "Hey, everypony! Does anypony have a toupee?!"

The ponies exchanged perplexed looks, wondering why the pink pony needed a toupee.

Pinkie Pie then made the flagpole bend so that she could point to the donkey's bald head. "This donkey is _really, really, bald_!" she added and the ponies started laughing. "What's so funny?" she asked through the megaphone. "This is serious business, everypony! Cranky needs a new wig to cover his hairless head!"

"I have had enough!" Cranky Doodle Donkey shouted, scooped up a tuff on dirt to put on his head, and went to retrieve his wagon.

"Oh, you're losing him, Pinkie," the pink pony moaned and hurried after him. "Wait, Cranky! Please, let me make it up to you!"

The donkey shook his head firmly. "No!"

Pinkie Pie wasn't about to take 'no' for an answer. "Please! Oh, please please please…" she pleaded and when he stopped his wagon, she took this a sign and hurried him away.

* * *

At the local spa, the spa ponies looked round when Pinkie Pie shoved Cranky Doodle Donkey inside. "Ladies, this is a spa emergency," she informed them. "Cranky needs help, STAT." And she left him in their clutches while she went in search of a new toupee for the cranky donkey.

* * *

After getting the full spa experience, which included a massage, Cranky Doodle Donkey exited the spa, feeling better, and only groaned a little when he saw the pink pony show up with a wrapped gift.

"Hi, Cranky!" Pinkie Pie said cheerfully, presenting him the gift. "I have a gift for you!"

"The spa treatment was gift enough," the cranky donkey assured her.

"It's not going to explode or anything," the pink pony assured him. "Promise. Just open it!" She beamed as he opened it to reveal a gold-colored toupee. "It's a new toupee! I had my friend Rarity make it. She calls it the "dreamboat special"."

Touched, Cranky Doodle Donkey took it out of the box and put it on his head, admiring it in the mirror she held up. "This is wonderful," he told her gratefully. "Thanks, kid." And he strolled off to retrieve his wagon.

"He's starting to warm up, but still no smile," Pinkie Pie remarked. "Hmmm."

* * *

A/N: Just keep trying, Pinkie, just keep trying. See you all on Monday. Bye for now! R&R everyone!


	3. Chapter 3: UNPACKING MISHAP!

My Little Pony Friendship is Magic: A Friend in Deed

A/N: Surprise! So, funny story: I get word last night that due to how slow it was at the movie theater, they don't need me to come in today for my shift, and that means that I get to update a third time this week! Cool huh?

Read, review, and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from _My Little Pony: Magic is Friendship_. I just own any and all characters that I just happen create.

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE: UNPACKING MISHAP!**

Feeling hopeful that she could get the cranky donkey to smile and seal their friendship, Pinkie Pie went to visit Cranky Doodle Donkey in his new home that was just outside the town. When she arrived at the cottage, she found the cranky donkey was busy unloading his wagon and carrying his belongs inside.

"Hey! Whatcha doing there, ol' buddy ol' pal?" the pink pony asked, startling him so that he almost dropped his record player.

"What's it look like?" Cranky Doodle Donkey grumbled, carrying the record player toward the front door.

Pinkie Pie looked around at the boxes and items scattered around the wagon. "Looks like a yard sale," she remarked and picked up a snow globe. "I'll give you two bits for this!" she offered, shaking it so that it snowed on the buildings.

The cranky donkey rolled his eyes. "I'm not selling, kid," he stated, going inside with his record player. "I'm unpacking."

"Well, why didn't you say so?" the pink pony asked, following him while still carrying the snow globe.

"I thought I had," he muttered, putting the record player on a table.

"This is so pretty!" Pinkie Pie remarked, holding up the snow globe. "Where'd you get it?"

"Manehattan," Cranky Doodle Donkey answered, turning to her. "Now put it down, gently." And he pointed to the mantle above the fireplace.

The pink pony placed the snow globe on the mantle. "Really? What were you doin' there?" she inquired.

The cranky donkey sighed sadly, walking past her to a box. "Trying to find a friend."

"Oooh, I'm always trying to find friends, and today I found you," Pinkie Pie commented, smiling brightly. "See how good I am at it?"

Cranky Doodle Donkey rolled his eyes while opening the box. "This was a special friend."

"Like me?" the pink pony suggested eagerly.

Cranky Doodle Donkey shook his head and took items out of the box to put away. "No, you're _extra _special, kid." And he went to the next room.

"Yes! I'm in!" Pinkie Pie said to herself and then noticed a red ornament lying on a box. "Woow, where in Equestria did you get this, Cranky?" she asked, hooking it with her hair and carried it into the next room.

"Fillydelphia," he answered, putting a fancy-looking blue book on a table.

"It's awfully pretty," the pink pony commented, admiring the ornament as the light caused it to glitter.

A wistful expression etched itself across Cranky Doodle Donkey's face. "Yes, she was," he said, recalling a memory, and was pulled out of it when he saw the curious expression on the pink pony's face. "I mean, it was- I mean, it is," he said, quickly correcting himself. "Yes, it's pretty. Now put it down!" And he left the room to resume unpacking.

Pinkie Pie set the ornament on the table and noticed the book. "I wonder where Cranky got this?" she wondered and opened it, flipping through the pages until she saw something that she recognized. "Huh. Will you look at that? Hey, Cranky! Can I ask you about-" she began, turning and unknowingly stepped on a loose floor plank.

It hit the table, sending the ornament flying through the air so that it bounced off the nearest wall, hit a lamp, which fell with a crash on the book, bursting into flames. "Oh no!" she yelped.

Cranky Doodle Donkey came back to see what she'd broke. "What did you say-ayayayayay!" he cried, rushing to the burning book. "What have you done?!"

Pinkie Pie grabbed a nearby vase and dump both the water and the flowers onto the book, putting out the flames. "There! Uh, all better?" she asked hopefully.

"No, not all better, _all soggy_!" Cranky Doodle Donkey yelled, holding up the ruined and soaked book.

"I'm sorry, Cranky!" the pink pony apologized, feeling horrible for ruining the book.

"Oh, you're sorry!" the angry donkey snapped. "Well, then, everything is fine!" he added sarcastically.

Pinkie Pie looked at him hopefully. "…It is?"

"_No_!" Cranky Doodle Donkey yelled, shoving her out of the cottage. "It isn't! Listen to me, kid, I will _never _be your friend!"

"Never, or never-ever?" she asked.

"Never, ever, ever, ever, ever!" the angry donkey shouted and slammed the door shut.

Pinkie Pie stared at the door for a moment and reality sunk. "That's four 'evers'," she whispered. "That's like… forever!"_ 'I think I just lost a possible friend _forever_!'_

Has Pinkie Pie lost Cranky Doodle Donkey as a friend? Will she ever be able to make it up to him?

* * *

A/N: Oh dear, looks like Pinkie Pie might not get to make a new friend after all. Guess you'll have to wait until Monday to find out for sure. Bye for now! R&R everyone!


	4. Chapter 4: APOLOGY TIME

My Little Pony Friendship is Magic: A Friend in Deed

A/N: Greetings, MLP fans, and here is the final chapter for this story. Can Pinkie Pie redeem herself and become friends with Cranky Doodle? Time to find out.

Read, review, and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from _My Little Pony: Magic is Friendship_. I just own any and all characters that I just happen create.

* * *

**CHAPTER FOUR: APOLOGY TIME**

Feeling horrible for ruining the book and loosing Cranky Doodle Donkey as a new friend, Pinkie Pie went to the library, where she found Twilight Sparkle and Sunrise Blossom sorting through some books that they'd been sent, Sarah was making lists of the book titles, and Rainbow Dash was reading the latest Daring Do book.

"I just can't believe it," she complained, pacing after sharing the story with her friends. "Cranky said he would never _forever _be my friend. It was horrible."

"It does sound horrible," Sunrise Blossom agreed, giving her friend a much-needed hug. "I'm _really _sorry that happen, Pinkie."

"And you didn't meant to burn that book," Sarah added. "It was an accident."

Twilight Sparkle agreed with them and voiced her own thoughts. "I know this is hard for you, Pinkie," she said, "seeing that you're friends with everypony, but you just have to accept that Cranky is gonna be an exception. He just… doesn't want to be bothered."

"Yeah," said Rainbow Dash, turning a page in the book, "he doesn't want to be bothered by your over-the-top super-hyper antics."

"Rainbow!" the three unicorns snapped, glaring at the blue pegasus.

"No, no, it's okay, Twilight, Sunrise, Sarah," Pinkie Pie assured them, "I get what you're saying. What you're all saying. And I guess… I can leave Cranky alone… Right after he accepts my apology!" And she trotted off, missing seeing Sunrise Blossom and Sarah covering their faces with their hooves while Twilight Sparkle groaned, face-planting in a book while Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes.

"Typical Pinkie."

* * *

Over at the cottage, Cranky Doodle Donkey was looking wistfully at his ruined book, gently touching the soaked pages and sighing.

"Cranky!" said Pinkie Pie, appearing in the doorway.

Cranky Doodle Donkey yelped and bolted past her. "No! No! Leave me alone!" he wailed as she gave chase.

"Wait!" the pink pony called out, bouncing after him. "I understand that you don't want me as a friend!"

"No, I don't!" the cranky donkey agreed, running through the town.

Pinkie Pie followed after him. "So I just wanted to say 'I'm sorry'!" she called out.

"Fine! You said it!" Cranky Doodle Donkey shouted back at her, still running and trying to find a hiding place, but like in the cartoons, she kept finding him.

"But do you accept my apology?" she asked.

"No!" he shouted.

"Please accept my apology! Please!" she pleaded.

"No!" he wailed.

"But I'm really, really, really… really, really…" Pinkie Pie said, chasing him all over town. "…really, really, really… really, really, really… really, really, really… really, really, really… _sorry_!"

* * *

Briefly managing to loose the pink pony, Cranky Doodle Donkey fled back to his house, where he put a bunch of locks and chains on the door, making sure that nopony could get inside, and he sighed. "Phew!" He did jump when there was a knocking on the door.

_`"Cranky, please, _please _accept my apology!"` _Pinkie Pie pleaded through the door._ `"I'd do anything to make it up to you!"`_

"But there's nothing you can do!" the cranky donkey shouted. "You ruined my book! You destroyed all I have to remember her by!"

_`"Her?"`_ Pinkie Pie repeated. _`"Her who? The special friend?"`_

Cranky Doodle Donkey had had enough. "_Go away, Pinkie_!" he yelled and when he couldn't hear her, he took off his toupee and sighed sadly, sinking to the floor with an unhappy bray. He started when there was more knocking on the door.

_`"Cranky? It's me again,"`_ said Pinkie Pie's muffled voice. _`"I understand that you don't wanna be my friend or accept my apology… Before I leave you alone forever, I have something to at least _try _to make up for ruining your book."`_

Cranky Doodle Donkey got up and faced the door angrily. "No, I don't want it, kid!" he snapped, wishing that the pink pony would just leave him alone. "Anything you would give me is sure to lead to some sort of disaster!"

_`"Goodness, you really _are _cranky,"`_ said Matilda's bemused voice.

Recognizing the voice, Cranky Doodle Donkey removed the locks and chains from the door and opened it. "It can't be…" he whispered, putting his toupee back on and pushing Pinkie Pie aside so that he could see the female donkey, who was smiling at him. "Is it really you?" he asked, no longer whispering.

"It can, and it is," Matilda confirmed, still smiling.

"Matilda! But how?" the stunned male donkey wondered.

Matilda nodded at the pink pony, who was happily watching them. "Pinkie."

Cranky Doodle Donkey couldn't believe it and looked questioningly at the pink pony. "But… I never told you about her!"

"You didn't have to," Pinkie Pie explained. "I put two and two and two together and it added up to Matilda."

Cranky Doodle Donkey blinked, trying to make sense of what she just said. "What?"

"Well, when you were talking about your souvenirs," the pink pony explained, "you said something about trying to find a special friend! And y'know, I wasn't just born yesterday. Nuh-uh! My birthday isn't for another seventy five days!"

Cranky Doodle Donkey was still confused. "Huh?"

"And then, in your scrapbook," Pinkie Pie continued, "there was a flower, an old ticket, and a menu from the Grand Galloping Gala! And I knew I recognized all these things."

"But how could you have ever seen them before?" Cranky Doodle Donkey inquired, now starting to catch on of how the pink pony explained things.

Matilda held up a pink book. "Because I also have them in _my _scrapbook."

"And I'd seen them in Matilda's book!" Pinkie Pie added happily.

"Oh, Matilda," Cranky Doodle Donkey sighed as they looked at the page with the stuff from the Grand Galloping Gala. "The night we met at the Gala was the most magical night of my life."

* * *

_A young Cranky Doodle Donkey escorted the young Matilda to her room at the palace and smiled when she kissed him on the cheek before going inside and shutting the door. The next morning, Cranky Doodle Donkey went to the room and he was disappointed to see that she was gone. Sadly he left to find her, missing the note she'd left on the door, which floated to the floor._

_`"__I couldn't wait to see you again. But when I came to your room the next day, you were gone."`_

_`"Didn't you get my note?"`_

_Cranky Doodle Donkey searched all of Equestria for years, his black hair eventually falling out so that he had to by the old toupee, and he grew grumpy when he couldn't find her._

_`"__No, I never got it. Ever since that day I've gone from town to town to town, searching all over Equestria for you__…"`_

* * *

"…Until finally I gave up," he concluded. "I came to Ponyville to retire from my search."

"I was living in Ponyville the whole time," Matilda informed him. "I always hoped that some day you would come and find me… Doodle."

Pinkie Pie, who'd been keeping quiet the whole time, which was a first for her, started when the female donkey called him 'Doodle' "Uh. Matilda? Nopony calls him Doodle," she warned.

"Nopony… but Matilda. Mmm," said Cranky Doodle Donkey.

"Oh, Doodle, I'm so happy to see you," Matilda said, kissing him on the nose.

And for the first time in years, Cranky Doodle Donkey actually smiled and let out a happy braying.

Pinkie Pie was thrilled to see him smile finally. "So does this mean that you accept my apology?" she asked hopefully.

"Yes, Pinkie, I accept your apology," Cranky Doodle Donkey told her gratefully, still smiling, "and I am honored to call you my friend."

"Woo-hoo!" Pinkie Pie squealed, shooting into the air like a firework and landed with a happy thump. "This is just fantastic! Ooh, now we can hang out together and chat and sing songs and" she gasped "_party_! Oh, I have to throw you guys a _big _party! It'll be called the 'Welcome to Ponyville/I Found My Lost Love/I'm BFF's with Pinkie Pie' Party!" She paused and calmed down a little with a sheepish smile. "…Or maybe something less over-the-top and not so super-hyper."

Cranky Doodle Donkey chuckled. "Pinkie, we're eternally grateful to you," he remarked. "But… Matilda and I just want to spend some time together in peace and quiet."

"Oh. Um, but we're still friends?" the pink pony asked.

"Pinkie, you went way, way, _way _out of your way to make me happy," Cranky Doodle Donkey stated. "Of course we're friends."

Pinkie Pie beamed. "Great!" She went to a picnic table and wrote a letter to Princess Celestia while the two donkeys went into the cottage for some alone time.

_Dear Princess Celestia,_

_There are many different kinds of friends, and many ways to express friendship. Some friends like to run and laugh and play together. But others just like to be left alone, and that's fine too. But the best thing about friendship is being able to make your friends smile__._

_Your faithful subject,_

_Pinkie Pie_

Pinkie Pie rolled up the letter and smiled when she saw the couple kissing in front of one of the windows. "He had a Cranky Doodle sweetheart," she sang softly at first and then sang louder. "She's his cranky doodle joy. I helped the Cranky Doodle boy, yeah! I helped the Cranky Doodle boy!"

"Pinkie!"

"Whoops, privacy. Sorry."

* * *

A/N: And Pinkie Pie saves the day. Hooray! So, I will post again on Thursday due to my having work tomorrow morning at the movie theater. Bye for now! R&R everyone!


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